1. Field
The present invention relates generally to devices configured to cool an item, e.g., during fabrication of the item. More specifically, embodiments of the present invention concern a clamp with a receptacle that holds a coolant adjacent to a clamping face to remove heat from a clamped item.
2. Discussion of Prior Art
It is well known in the art to use an insulated cooler or a powered refrigeration system to remove heat from various items in order to chill (or freeze) an item. In cooling applications that require an item to be quickly frozen, a very low-temperature coolant, such as dry ice, is used to flash freeze the item. In conventional use, dry ice is placed in a large insulated container with the item to be frozen. To minimize the rate at which the dry ice within the container sublimates (i.e., the rate at which the carbon dioxide goes from the solid phase to the gas phase), the dry ice container includes a relatively thick layer of insulation.
However, the prior art containers and methods for using dry ice have various deficiencies. For instance, the prior art containers are inconvenient for a person to manually move and position. Also, the container door must be closed while the item being frozen is in the container in order to minimize the rate of sublimation of the dry ice.